When trouble comes

Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take courage; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Yes, you will have trouble

Jesus said, “in this world, you will have trouble.” That is because we live in a fallen world and problems of all kinds and sizes will challenge us from time to time. Just this past week, for instance, Susan and I were on vacation, happily driving along in our RV on a remote road in another state, and suddenly, our vehicle’s engine quit and wouldn’t restart. We called roadside assistance and waited on the roadside for almost three hours for them to come. They towed us to the nearest repair facility which was a two hour drive from where we broke down. We arrived about midnight Friday and waited there all night for them to open the next morning. The problem turned out to be a broken water pump which had to be ordered and wouldn’t arrive until Monday morning. The repair folks allowed us to stay in their parking lot over the weekend and even had a car available for us to use. We treated the weekend as an unexpected adventure, exploring their town. On Monday morning a new fuel pump was installed, and we were again on our way.

What to do when trouble comes your way

1) Don’t get upset. Take a deep breath and remain calm. You can’t prevent problems from coming your way, but you can control how you react to them. If you allow yourself to panic or get upset you won’t be able to make good decisions related to finding a needed solution. “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” (Col. 3:15)

2) Ask for God’s help. “… God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1 ESV). When you ask, God may give you wisdom and knowledge to find a solution and/or He may send someone to help you. But, if you don’t ask God for His help, you may not get it. “You do not have because you do not ask God.” (James 4:2 NIV)

3) Look for and expect God to work it out. When we broke down alongside a remote highway we decided not to get upset but to trust God and to treat it as an opportunity to see how it would all work out. Even though our plans were interrupted, it all eventually got resolved. “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble…” (Nahum 1:7 ESV)